Alaska Legislative Leader Wants All Alcohol Taxes Used to Fund Treatment, Prevention

Alaska Senate Majority Leader Johnny Ellis has proposed directing all tax revenues from sales of alcoholic beverages to paying for addiction treatment and prevention programs, the Associated Press reported Jan. 27.

Ellis recently introduced legislation that would roughly double the $40 million in tax money the state currently directs to treatment and prevention. The current law calls for using half of alcohol tax collections on addiction programs.

Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell has made tackling domestic violence and sexual violence a legislative priority, and Ellis said a good way to do that would be to address the addiction issues that often underly such crimes.